Few days of reading had me questioning as much as I questioned Day 9 - a large portion of Leviticus. God gives Moses A TON of laws for the people to follow. I am not kidding - there are A TON! I knew about some of these laws before - after all 10 of them are the commandments that we all know - but some of them are bizarre, seemingly unimportant, or over-important! Two that were about a page apart caught my attention:
Lev 18:22 "Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable."
Lev 19:19 "Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material."
According to these passages, being a gay man is a sin. So is wearing a nice poly-cotton blend.
Let me just say: WHAT?!?!!!?!?!?!
I have so many questions about this and no answers, so I'll just list them:
Why are God's instructions so exacting?
As Christians, do these still count as sins today?
Should I be confessing my love for poly-cotton blends when I list my sins?
Are these laws as important as the 10 commandments? Is there a such thing as an unimportant law in Gods eyes?
I know that Lev 18:22 has been quoted a LOT lately as an argument against gay marriage, but is it still relevant? Or are we quoting something that has been usurped by the power of Christ?
It is frustrating to have more questions than answers, but dwelling on these questions is what has made the experience of reading the bible thoroughly so interesting.
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If you were at my work, being gay would definitely still count as a sin. They get all up in arms about wives submitting to husbands too and it really kind of makes my blood boil from time to time. Some people take the Bible too literally for me.
ReplyDeleteHave you seen this site?
http://www.godhatesshrimp.com/
You bring up the point that the UCC brings up also in: "I know that Lev 18:22 has been quoted a LOT lately as an argument against gay marriage, but is it still relevant? Or are we quoting something that has been usurped by the power of Christ?"
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot of very particular laws in that book, and you're right, that's what drives so many Christians stance that "God hates gay marriage and/or gays"... that one little line is their biggest stance (though there are a few others thrown around also... out of context of course). But like you said there are other random things also that are sins, something about eating seafood (in particular shellfish and 'bottom dwellers'). So if homosexuality is hated then shouldn't likewise the wearing of your favorite poly-cotton blend?